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Published: June 26th 2009
I had a chance to use some of the Czech we’ve been learning last night. I was sitting in the lobby of the dormitory working on last night’s blog entry and checking my email when a man walked toward my table and started asking me something in Czech. I kind of froze, but after a few seconds I resorted to “Promiňte, promiňte. Nemluvim česky!” He gave me a bit of a blank look, then asked if I spoke English. I replied that yes, I do in fact speak English and he sat down next to me. He asked me what I was doing at the university, where I’m from, what I’m studying, how I like Prague, what I think of the Czech people, all sorts of things. He also commented on the fact that I wasn’t wearing earrings, so I’ve been keeping an eye on the Czech women and I’m fairly sure every one I’ve seen has been wearing them. It was interesting, but at the same time I was a little uneasy because I didn’t know him at all, had never seen him before, and there was no one else in the lobby. One of the girls from Kansas ended up coming down for a little while, so that made it a little better. I think we talked for about half an hour before my battery died and I left.
Today consisted of class, mostly economic development, with some history and Czech language. I don’t have too much to say about the lectures today except it’s interesting to see different viewpoints on the communist regime that controlled the Czech Republic years ago. Of course in the States we view communism as practically a cardinal sin, as do some of the people here, but there are also some people who didn’t think it was that bad. Boučkova spent a bit of time today talking about how some of the older people in her neighborhood will talk about how things were better under communism, because they had secure, guaranteed jobs, cheap housing, free child care, and free medical care. She mentioned that people against communism tend to throw out the good aspects, such as these, and those in favor of communism have a tendency to overlook some of the more negative aspects (…like forcing political dissidents to mine radioactive ore…). I guess it makes sense that people are going to see what they want to see, but I’d never really thought of the other side of communism so this was a pretty good lecture.
It’s finally stopped raining for a bit. Right now the sun’s out, and I’d say it’s probably somewhere in the neighborhood of the upper 60s. Professor Boučkova told us that there was severe flooding in Moravia (the eastern part of the Czech Republic) yesterday, and 12 people died. She also said it’s supposed to continue raining for the next several days. I’ve heard some of the American students say it’s supposed to clear up by Tuesday, but I haven’t really checked on the weather myself.
This weekend should be fun. Tonight we’re going to the largest dance club in Central Europe, which has four or five stories with different music on each floor. I’m not real big on clubbing or dancing in general, but I think it’ll be interesting to at least see what it’s like. I’ve had several people at home tell me I have to go to at least one dance club in Europe anyway, just for the experience. I’ll let you know how that goes. Tomorrow I was half planning on going to a music festival, but today I found out that there was a trip to another castle, so the concert lost. I can’t remember the name of the estate right now, but I do know that Franz Ferdinand lived there, so that’s something to look forward to seeing. I’m not sure what’s slated for Sunday, but even if it’s just aimless wandering around the city it’ll be nice. I should probably get some schoolwork done, too, now that I think of it. But this is my first weekend in Prague, and I still have five weeks to write my papers. It’ll work out.
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Granny Good Witch
non-member comment
Hi, Sweetheart. Love reading your letters. So proud of you. Sounds like you are having a wonderful time. After reading this last letter about the stranger, remember don't talk to little old gray haired ladies either. HA HA. Some of them aren't good witches like me and aunt Ju-Ju !!!!!!!!!!! Oh, and about the dumpling, no wise cracks about grandma's stuffing, tho I did get a good chuckle out of it. Later, Love you. Grandma